For SouthCoast vets, flag speaks volumes

Early one Saturday morning on William Street in Fairhaven, a red SUV pulled to the post office curb. A postal employee unlocked the lobby doors, lowered the United States flag to half-staff for the day, and drove off.

Early one Saturday morning on William Street in Fairhaven, a red SUV pulled to the post office curb. A postal employee unlocked the lobby doors, lowered the United States flag to half-staff for the day, and drove off.

The flag is at half-staff on all state property until Monday in honor of former Gov. Paul Cellucci, who died of Lou Gehrig's disease in June.

"Whether the flag is at full-staff or half-staff, it's still flying, and that's the important thing," said Acushnet Veterans Agent Ron Cormier, a Vietnam-era Air Force veteran.

With custodians' help, Cormier tends to the U.S. flag in front of Acushnet Town Hall, as he takes care of the needs of the town's veterans. And, as the country celebrates its 237th birthday this Independence Day, Cormier was among local veterans reflecting on the special significance the broad stripes and bright stars hold for Americans.

Roy Oliveira, Dartmouth's Veterans Agent, is a retired Air Force master sergeant of 23 years who served in Iraq and at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

"Anytime I handle the flag of our country, I never think of it as just another part of my job," Oliveira said. "I always think of the men and women who served. That's why when I took on this position, I chose to be the one to raise and lower (the flag) myself."

Oliveira said his status as an immigrant — he is a citizen, but came to the United States with his parents from the Azores when he was 8 — accounts for at least part of the passion of his patriotism.

"A lot of folks, including my folks, came here to find a better life, and it's been good to them," he said.

New Bedford's Priscilla Louro-Fonseca, a past commander of American Legion District 1, enlisted in the Air Force during the Korean War when she was 18.

This year, she anticipates that New Bedford's first memorial exclusive to female veterans will be dedicated on Veterans Day.

"We live under (the flag) and we die under it," she said. "The flag is very important to all of us."

Back at the Fairhaven Post Office, Postmaster Peter Angelone said he wasn't sure who might have lowered the flag on this particular Saturday morning. But he said that when it comes to the U.S. flag and patriotism, there was no better person to talk to than letter carrier Gerry Payette.

Payette served in the Army in Vietnam and Germany. In World War II, his dad earned a Bronze Star, awarded for heroism. His son, also named Gerry, served in the Coast Guard. His younger brother, John, was killed while in the service during a mine-removal operation in the early 1980s in Guantanamo Bay.

Payette is a man who walks the patriotic walk. He coordinates Fairhaven's Veterans Day Parade, helps out with the Memorial Day Parade, and orchestrated the Vietnam Memorial Moving Wall's display in Fairhaven last year.

When it comes to his relationship with the American flag, Payette is with it to the very end.

"People bring flags to me for disposal, because they know I do it the right way," he said. And that right way, according to flag etiquette, may surprise some.

Payette carefully folds the banners, takes them to the Fire Department — and then ceremoniously incinerates them.